Former HPD crime lab supervisors file retaliation lawsuit

Pair claim in federal case that Lykos retaliated when they complained about HPD breath-alcohol vans

Updated 10:58 pm, Monday, December 17, 2012

Photo: Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle

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Amanda Culbertson, left, and Jorge Wong contend in a lawsuit that they were victims of retaliation when the District Attorney's Office lobbied the Commissioners Court to cancel a contract with a company where they had found employment.

Amanda Culbertson, left, and Jorge Wong contend in a lawsuit that they were victims of retaliation when the District Attorney's Office lobbied the Commissioners Court to cancel a contract with a company where

Chip Lewis, attorney for Amanda Culbertson and Jorge Wong, says the lawsuit "is bigger than just their individual causes."

Chip Lewis, attorney for Amanda Culbertson and Jorge Wong, says the lawsuit "is bigger than just their individual causes."

Photo: Johnny Hanson

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Former Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos is named in the lawsuit.

Former Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos is named in the lawsuit.

Photo: Cody Duty, Houston Chronicle

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Along with Pat Lykos, prosecutor Rachel Palmer is also accused of using retaliatory measures in the lawsuit.

Along with Pat Lykos, prosecutor Rachel Palmer is also accused of using retaliatory measures in the lawsuit.

Photo: Cody Duty

Former HPD crime lab supervisors file retaliation lawsuit

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Two former Houston Police Department crime lab supervisors have filed a federal lawsuit against Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos, saying the county's top prosecutor retaliated against them after they spoke out about problems with HPD's breath-alcohol testing vans.

Among several allegations, the lawsuit says that officials with the DA's office retaliated against Culbertson and Wong by lobbying the Harris County Commissioner's Court to cancel a contract with a local private laboratory, where the two found jobs after leaving HPD.

The lawsuit also alleges that retaliatory actions taken by Lykos and Palmer included harming Culbertson and Wong's reputations and putting their licenses as technical supervisors for the state's breath-alcohol testing program at stake.

Culbertson and Wong said the retaliation began after they expressed concerns about the reliability of tests conducted in HPD's breath-alcohol testing vans.

"It's important for citizens to be able to speak openly and publicly about matters of public concern, such as problems with the (breath-alcohol testing) vans and problems with the crime lab," said attorney Scott Cook, who represents Culbertson and Wong. "That is the heart of the First Amendment."

Lykos did not personally comment on the lawsuit and Palmer did not return calls for comment.

The District Attorney's Office released a statement that said, "It is disappointing that a wise decision of the Harris County Commissioners Court in October of 2011 is now being attacked in a baseless lawsuit."

In an interview with the Houston Chronicle, Culbertson and Wong said they were doing their jobs as scientists and lab supervisors when they communicated their concerns about the reliability of tests taken in the breath-alcohol testing vehicles, known as BAT vans. Both said they have not only lost their jobs because of the retaliation, but it has damaged their character.

BAT vans

Culbertson testified during a July 2011 court hearing that she quit her HPD job because she could no longer trust the accuracy of tests conducted by BAT vans due to overheating and electrical spikes the vehicles incurred in the field.

Culbertson's testimony sparked questions from defense attorneys, who alleged HPD and the DA's office hid problems with the vehicles. The attorneys were concerned that breath samples taken as evidence in the vans could have been compromised in dozens of DWI cases.

Issues surrounding the BAT vans also later became the subject of a Harris County grand jury investigation. Ultimately, the grand jury investigation did not yield any indictments.

The lawsuit alleges that Palmer, a prosecutor supervising DWI cases, told other prosecutors at the DA's office that Culbertson was not credible shortly after she gave her testimony.

In October 2011, about three months after Culbertson's testimony, Harris County commissioners dropped a two-decade-old breath-alcohol testing contract with Lone Star College, where Culbertson and Wong began working after they left HPD.

The pair said their jobs with the college were contingent upon the contract with the county. Culbertson and Wong both said they lost their jobs following the contract's cancellation.

Culbertson said the DA's office lobbied county officials to cancel the contract in retaliation against her for speaking out about problems with the HPD bat vans. She said those concerns, which were expressed by herself and coworkers to HPD officials several months before the July 2011 court hearing, were either ignored or not properly addressed.

Officials with the DA's office have previously denied allegations of retaliation, saying that they preferred to begin using the Texas Department of Public Safety, which oversees the state's breath-alcohol testing program, because of cost savings and enhanced services. They also said they have found no problems with the reliability or accuracy of the tests conducted in the BAT vans.

Still out of work

Wong, who has not found employment since he was let go from Lone Star, said his ordeal has shattered his faith in the criminal justice system. He isn't sure if he would want to work as scientist in a law enforcement laboratory again.

"Unfortunately, this has been really eye-opening in a bad way," said Wong, who has a doctorate in chemistry.

Culbertson said she has only found some contract work reviewing cases for defense attorneys. She feels that the damage to her reputation caused by the controversy surrounding the BAT vans is a large part of why she hasn't found a steady job in her field.

"I'm seriously considering going back to school and pursue a completely different career path," she said. "And that does really upset me because that's seven years that I spent in school to be a scientist that I'm having to throw out the window."

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